Suffolk County Route 16 - New York, 2000
Medford’s story
57 years in pictures
The archive holds 6 old photos and papers going back to 1873 and 5 maps from 1904 on.
- 1969Medford is settled
MedfordNY
Population 24,796: a town settled in 1969.
7 bordering townsMap →
Photo: DanTD · CC BY-SA 3.0
Population
24,796
Census survey, 2020–24
Typical home
$618K
+5.8% in a year
Household income
$128K
median
Median age
39.6
years
Jobs based here
7,362
A commuter town
Is Medford a good place to live?
Medford’s median rent is $2,353 a month, where New York’s towns sit at $1,101 a month and U.S. towns at $1,185 a month. The biggest park or preserve is Sipp Avenue Soccer Complex, at 31 acres. We don’t grade Medford yet; the figures below are still real.
A commuter town
93% of working residents leave Medford for work
Where Medford’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
7,362jobs based in Medford
7%of working residents work in town
13 mimedian commute distance
Census LEHD 2023
Nearby attractions
All 517 attractions →Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum and 72 more within 40 miles
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Medford. Close and well known come first.
32 mi Stadium & arenaNassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum
34 mi Stadium & arenaYale Bowl
27 mi National Historic SiteSagamore Hill National Historic Site122K visitors a year
32 mi State parkJones Beach State Park
36 mi MuseumGlass House
11 mi LandmarkCalverton National CemeterySources: National Park Service · ski areas © OpenSkiMap / OpenStreetMap contributors · Wikidata · Wikipedia readership · photos via Wikimedia Commons
Photo credits
Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum: iMatthew // talk //, Public domain · Yale Bowl: Kenneth Zirkel, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Sagamore Hill National Historic Site: Unknown, Public domain · Jones Beach State Park: Bjoertvedt, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Glass House: Carol M. Highsmith, Public domain · Calverton National Cemetery: United States Department of Veterans Affairs, Public domain
Getting set up
Moving to Medford: who provides what
Medford is unincorporated, so Suffolk County and regional agencies provide most services.
PowerPSEG Long Island26.2¢/kWh · EIA 2025HIFLD · EIA
WaterSuffolk County Water AuthorityNo health-based violations in 5 years · EPAEPA
Internet3 providers96% of addresses get 100/20 MbpsFCC
Trash & county servicesSuffolk CountySuffolk County provides services here
SchoolsPatchogue-Medford Union Free School DistrictLongwood Central School District2 districts serve Medford; which school depends on your address and gradeNCES
Register to voteOnlineIn New York you can register online until 10 days before Election Day, in person until 10 days before Election Day, or by mail (postmarked 15 days before and received 10 days before).vote.govWho runs elections hereSuffolk County Board of ElectionsSuffolk County; contacts on the Handbook page.FVAP, Sep 2024
ZIP codes11763, 1173811763 95% · 11738 5%Census 2020
EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Aug 3, 2026.
The data
Ordered by what stands out in Medford.
Natural hazards
The biggest natural risk in Medford is inland flooding, at a very low overall level
FEMA puts nearly two thirds of Medford’s expected hazard losses down to inland flooding, and 12% to hurricanes. Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in 87% of U.S. communities.
13risk score of 100
FEMA risk score
Inland floodingHurricanesEarthquakes
12
paid flood claims since 1978
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Work & commute
About one in three of Medford’s working residents commute to Brookhaven
For Medford, the average trip to work is 32 minutes. Only 7% of working residents stay in Medford for work; the rest commute out. Jobs based in the town fell to 7,362 in 2023, 2,136 fewer than in 2013. Medford: 7.1% of residents live below the poverty line.
7%work in town
| Medford | New York towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median household income | $128,000 | $82,000 | $80,000 |
| Average trip to work | 32 minutes | 25 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Work from home | 8% | 12% | 11% |
| Below the poverty line | 7.1% | 9.5% | 9.6% |
Where working residents work
In Medford7%
Brookhaven33%
Islip17%
New York16%
Smithtown6%
13 mi
median commute distance
7,362
jobs based in Medford
A commuter town
jobs vs. working residents
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Climate
Four seasons and pleasant summers: that is Medford’s year
Expect July afternoons of 83° and January nights of 23°, with about 32 inches of snow a winter.
32″snow a winter
Typical low → high °F
Winter25–42°
Spring40–58°
Summer63–81°
Fall46–64°
Nov 2
typical first frost
Apr 10
typical last frost
+2.3°
vs. the 20th-century average
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Housing
The typical home in Medford is valued at about $618K
Among households in Medford, 88% own their home. Typical home values rose 5.8% in the year to September 2026. A home in Medford typically sold within 23 days of listing.
$618KZillow home value
Typical home value
Medford$618K
New York$525K
Market temperature
23
days on market
104.3%
sale-to-list price
+5.8%
value change, 1 year
28
homes sold in September
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Health
How healthy Medford is
In Medford, 17% of adults have been diagnosed with depression. Two figures for adults here: 40% sleep under 7 hours, 11% smoke cigarettes.
| Medford | New York towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Depression (CDC PLACES) | 17% | 21% | 23% |
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 40% | 37% | 36% |
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 11% | 13% | 14% |
| Feel lonely (CDC PLACES) | 30% | 32% | 33% |
32 measures vs. New York
4 better28 too close to call0 worse
| What stands out | Medford | NY |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults facing food insecurity | 14.3% | 17.2% |
| Fewer adults facing a utility shut-off | 6.9% | 8.2% |
Long Island Community Hospital
2.9 mi away · emergency room
None
primary care, dental or mental-health shortage
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Outdoors
4.4% of Medford is conserved land
In 7 parks and preserves, walkers have 6.1 miles of trail. For Medford, the trail network density is 0.6 miles per square mile.
4.4%conserved
| Medford | New York towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.6 miles per square mile | 0.4 | 0.4 |
| Conserved land | 4.4% | 5.2% | 4.3% |
4.4%
conserved · 300 of 6,870 acres
6.1 mi
of trails · 0.6 per sq mi
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Sipp Avenue Baseball Complex | 0.7 mi | 26 |
| 2. Eagle Estates Park | 0.7 mi | 15 |
| 3. Sipp Avenue Soccer Complex | — | 31 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Keep exploring
Everything we know about Medford
17pages on Medford
The big questions
Out and about
After high school
Colleges nearby
2 within 15 miles of the center of Medford
Suffolk County Community CollegeCommunity college · Public · Selden4.1 mi$6,630 in-state tuitionStony Brook UniversityUniversity or college · Public · Stony Brook9.5 mi$10,931 in-state tuition
About 6 of every 100 Medford residents are enrolled in college, about the same as New York.
Famous people from Medford
4 notable people were born in Medford.
About Medford
Hamlet & census-designated place in New York, United States
Medford is a hamlet and census-designated place (CDP) in the Town of Brookhaven in Suffolk County, on Long Island, in New York, United States. The population was 24,247 at the 2020 census.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
- Area
- 11 sq mi
- Elevation
- 89 ft
- ZIP code
- 11763
- Area code
- 631
Medford’s neighbors
7 towns share a border with Medford.
YaphankCoramHoltsvilleGordon HeightsNorth BellportEast PatchogueFarmingvilleMedford
How the neighbors grade
| Town | NY rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Medford | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Yaphank | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Coram | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Holtsville | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Gordon Heights | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| North Bellport | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| East Patchogue | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Farmingville | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Medford, Yaphank, Coram, Holtsville, Gordon Heights, North Bellport, East Patchogue and Farmingville aren’t graded (fewer than 1,000 residents, or not enough data). Compare Medford with a neighbor →
Questions about Medford
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Is Medford, NY a good place to live?
We don’t grade Medford yet; the figures below are still real.
What is Medford, NY known for?
4 notable people were born here, including Marcus Stroman and Tricia Cast.